What do you think are the three or so most important supplements someone might want to take daily?

What supplements are the most important depends on your gender and your age. If your diet is lacking, a basic multivitamin is a good idea, which simply assures that you are getting the recommended daily doses of a number of essential vitamins. Beyond this, if you are a woman, I recommend you consider both calcium (600 mg twice a day) and magnesium (200 mg twice a day).  Read the rest of this entry »

Today’s fast-paced world leaves people little time to worry about their health—that is, until a medical emergency forces them to reassess their habits. That’s when it becomes apparent how much influence lifestyle choices have on our quality of life. For example, each day in the U.S., more than 4,000 people are diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, a chronic condition marked by high levels of blood glucose that can lead to serious complications and premature death.

And while there is no cure for the disease, it can be managed by eating healthy foods, exercising, maintaining a healthy weight and, if needed, medications or insulin therapy to regulate blood sugar levels. Read the rest of this entry »

Sugary soft drinks and energy drinks are taking it on the chin these days. First, two public-health experts floated the idea of a specific tax on sodas and energy drinks, and now, two other researchers are saying the drinks contribute to obesity and need an extreme makeover.

Walter Willett, who chairs the nutrition department at the Harvard School of Public Health, argues that there is a “direct causal link” between sugar-sweetened soft drinks and energy drinks and obesity, which is in turn linked to heart disease, some types of cancer, arthritis, and type 2 diabetes. Read the rest of this entry »

Nausea, indigestion, upset stomach, diarrhea. Sounds like a job for Pepto-Bismal! And the residents of Morrison, WI., surely wish these symptoms, which recently laid them low, along with debilitating ear infections, could be cured with such a simple remedy.

But no, Morrison’s woes were caused by contaminated drinking water and could not be cured so easily. There’s is a major public health problem and reports from the small Wisconsin town, have left the rest of us wondering where our water comes from, and what dangers lurk in our pipes and taps. Read the rest of this entry »

The biggest factor that determines how well you age is not your genes but how well you live. Not convinced? A new study published in the British Medical Journal of 20,000 British folks shows that you can cut your risk of having a stroke in half by doing the following four things: being active for 30 minutes a day, eating five daily servings of fruit and vegetables, and avoiding cigarettes and excess alcohol.

While those are some of the obvious steps you can take to age well, researchers have discovered that centenarians tend to share certain traits in how they eat, move about, and deal with stress—the sorts of things we can emulate to improve our own aging process. Read the rest of this entry »

Building a healthy lifestyle is a cornerstone to living a full life. Living a healthy lifestyle is more than just cutting calories to lose weight or taking the stairs. A healthy lifestyle is one based on maintaining physical, social and spiritual well being. Remember, a healthy lifestyle is about balance, calculated choices and motivation. A key component to living a healthy lifestyle is exercising on a regular basis.

Exercise

Over the years, research has shown us that diet and exercise play an important role in the prevention of heart disease. Before developing an exercise plan, discuss with your health care team what exercises, if any, would be good for you. Read the rest of this entry »

“Masturbation is sex with someone you love”, said Woody Allen, but many women feel ashamed to masturbate. Not only is it ok to masturbate, there are also great health benefits…..

If you’re like most women, you’ve been brought up to think of the idea of masturbation as something dirty, shameful or embarrassing.

While masturbation is considered perfectly acceptable for men, it’s always been something of a taboo subject for women. Not only is it not wrong for women, it can actually have far reaching side effects that can be good for your health.  Read the rest of this entry »